WWA World Heavyweight Championship (Indianapolis)
Encyclopedia
The WWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling
world heavyweight championship
in the Indianapolis
-based World Wrestling Association
from the promotion's formation in 1964 until the late 1980s.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
world heavyweight championship
Championship (professional wrestling)
A Championship or "title" in professional wrestling is a recognition promoted by professional wrestling organizations.Championship reigns are determined by professional wrestling matches, in which competitors are involved in scripted rivalries...
in the Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
-based World Wrestling Association
World Wrestling Association (Indianapolis)
The World Wrestling Association was an Indianapolis-based pro wrestling promotion which was operated by Dick "The Bruiser" Afflis and his business partner Wilbur Snyder. The WWA was affiliated with the larger American Wrestling Association and recognized its champions, though the WWA also had its...
from the promotion's formation in 1964 until the late 1980s.
Title history
Silver areas in the history indicate periods of unknown lineage.| Wrestler: | Times: | Date: | Location: | Notes: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dick the Bruiser William Afflis William Fritz Afflis , best known as Dick the Bruiser, was an American football player and professional wrestler.-Early life:... |
1 | April 22, 1964 | Los Angeles, CA Los Angeles, California Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California... |
Defeats Fred Blassie Fred Blassie Frederick Kenneth Blassman , better known as "Classy" Freddie Blassie, was an American professional wrestling villain and manager born in St. Louis, Missouri. Renowned as "The Fashion Plate of Professional Wrestling" , Blassie was a master at antagonizing the crowd, and inspired legendary animosity... for the Los Angeles version WWA World Heavyweight Championship (Los Angeles version) The WWA World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in the Los Angeles-based World Wrestling Association... of the championship; starts his own promotion in Indiana |
| Gene Kiniski Gene Kiniski Eugene Nicholas "Gene" Kiniski was a Canadian professional wrestler and the father of wrestlers Nick Kiniski and Kelly Kiniski. "Canada's Greatest Athlete" as he billed himself for promotional purposes was born outside of Edmonton, Alberta... |
1 | August 21, 1965 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 2 | December 25, 1965 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Mitsu Arakawa | 1 | October 8, 1966 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Wilbur Snyder Wilbur Snyder Wilbur Snyder was an American football player and professional wrestler.-Wrestling career:Snyder's wrestling debut occurred during the 1953 offseason. He was trained by Sandor Szabo and Warren Bockwinkel in Southern California. In 1954, Snyder retired from football completely to pursue a full-time... |
1 | September 30, 1967 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 3 | August 29, 1969 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Baron von Raschke James Raschke James Donald Raschke is a retired professional wrestler best known as Baron von Raschke.-Career:... |
1 | March 7, 1970 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 4 | October 14, 1970 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Baron von Raschke | 2 | November 29, 1971 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Art Thomas Sailor Art Thomas Sailor Art Thomas was a bodybuilder working as a professional wrestler.Arthur "Sailor Art" Thomas was born in Gurdon, Arkansas, as the son of Alfred and Jessie Thomas. Early in his life he moved to Wisconsin... |
1 | April, 1972 | Minneapolis, MN Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States... |
Phantom title change |
| Held up | May 20, 1972 | Title held up after a match against Baron von Raschke in Detroit, MI | ||
| Baron von Raschke | 3 | June 3, 1972 | Detroit, MI | Defeats Thomas in rematch |
| Bob Ellis | 1 | March 31, 1973 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Jimmy Valiant Jimmy Valiant James Harold Fanning is a former professional wrestler and author better known as Jimmy Valiant.-Personal life:... |
1 | 1974 | Detroit, MI | |
| Bob Ellis | 2 | 1974 | Detroit, MI | |
| Ox Baker Ox Baker Douglas A. Baker better known professionally as Ox Baker, is an American former professional wrestler and actor, and was feared for his dreaded finishing move, the Heart Punch, sometimes called the "Hurt Punch", after Baker's famous catchphrase "I love to hurt people!" He has appeared in several... |
1 | August 10, 1974 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Pepper Gomez | 1 | November 29, 1975 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Masked Stranger (Guy Mitchell) | 1 | May 1, 1976 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 5 | March 5, 1977 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Ivan Koloff | 1 | June 18, 1977 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Held up | November 12, 1977 | Title held up after a match against Dick the Bruiser | ||
| Dick the Bruiser | 6 | December 26, 1977 | ? | Defeats Koloff in rematch |
| Vacant | Prior to 1979 | Title vacant | ||
| Dick the Bruiser | 7 | June 9, 1979 | Indianapolis, IN | Defeats King Kong Brody |
| King Kong (Bruiser) Brody Frank Goodish Frank Donald Goodish was an American professional wrestler who earned his greatest fame under the name Bruiser Brody. Goodish was an All-State football and basketball player at Warren High School, Michigan, and played football at West Texas A&M University... |
1 | August 4, 1979 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 8 | May 31, 1980 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Ernie Ladd Ernie Ladd Ernest "Ernie" Ladd , nicknamed "The Big Cat" was an American collegiate and professional football player and a professional wrestler.-Pro Football career:... |
1 | November 1, 1980 | ? | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 9 | November 29, 1980 | ? | |
| Johnny Valiant | 1 | April 25, 1981 | ? | |
| Bobo Brazil Bobo Brazil Houston Harris was an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Bobo Brazil. He is credited with breaking down barriers of racial segregation in professional wrestling... |
1 | July 24, 1981 | Bartonville, IL Bartonville, Illinois Bartonville is a village in Peoria County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,310 at the 2000 census. Bartonville is a suburb of Peoria and is part of the Peoria, Illinois Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:... |
|
| Blackjack Mulligan Blackjack Mulligan Robert Jack Windham , better known by his ring name Blackjack Mulligan is a former professional wrestler and a former American football player... |
1 | October 11, 1981 | ? | |
| Bobo Brazil | 2 | November 1981 | Knoxville, TN Knoxville, Tennessee Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region... |
Phantom title change |
| Held up | February 13, 1982 | Title held up after a match against Harley Race where Race pins Brazil after using an illegal piledriver | ||
| Harley Race Harley Race Harley Leland Race is a retired American professional wrestler and current promoter and trainer. During his career as a wrestler, he held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship 7 times... |
1 | April 24, 1982 | Indianapolis, IN | Defeats Brazil in rematch |
| Vacant | July 1982 | Title vacant | ||
| Dick the Bruiser | 10 | January 1983 | ? | Awarded title |
| Bobby Colt | 1 | June 25, 1983 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Spike Huber | 1 | January 7, 1984 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Stormy Granzig | 1 | circa July 1984 | Terre Haute, IN Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute is a city and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, near the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a population of 170,943. The city is the county seat of Vigo County and... |
Phantom title change—Huber is fired after splitting with Bruiser's daughter |
| Greg Wojokowski Greg Wojciechowski Greg Wojciechowski is a former American amateur wrestler and professional wrestler, best known by his ring name The Great Wojo, who competed primarily for the Indianapolis-based World Wrestling Association during the 1980s, most notably being featured in the The $10,000 Challenge in which he would... |
1 | July 1984 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Dick the Bruiser | 11 | January 29, 1985 | Indianapolis, IN | |
| Greg Wojokowski | 2 | circa September 1985 | ? | |
| Scott Rechsteiner Scott Steiner Scott Carl Rechsteiner is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Scott Steiner. Steiner is perhaps best known for his appearances with World Championship Wrestling alongside his older brother Rick as the Steiner Brothers and as a member of the New World Order... (Scott Steiner) |
1 | August 14, 1986 | Dearborn, MI Dearborn, Michigan -Economy:Ford Motor Company has its world headquarters in Dearborn. In addition its Dearborn campus contains many research, testing, finance and some production facilities. Ford Land controls the numerous properties owned by Ford including sales and leasing to unrelated businesses such as the... |
|
| Greg Wojokowski | 3 | May 3, 1987 | Toledo, OH Toledo, Ohio Toledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan... |
|
| Calypso Jim (Bobo Brazil Jr.) | 1 | Summer 1988 | Ft.Wayne Indiana | |
| Golden Lion | 1 | 1990 | Ft.Wayne Indiana | Phantom Title change-Married Bruiser's Daughter Michelle |
| Title retired | 1991 | Promotion closed | ||